interestingly enough i’ve

interestingly enough i’ve also had a similiar/same problem with my macbook pro! having been running a cd in the superdrive, when I tried to eject the cd, i discovered it was stuck! On closer inspection, the metal above the superdrive slot had fatigued into the slot! I sent mine off to get looked at and the company, a repair group contracted by Apple, also claims it mustve been physical damage. Since then ive had numerous correspondences with Apple themselves over getting this macbook pro fixed under warranty cause I’ve looked after the macbook and know it has never been mistreated/dropped/damaged in any way and have numerous witnesses to this fact! and yet Apple has been quite insistent that its not covered under their warranty, so im now deciding how far i need to take this.

Darren, I’ve had the

Darren,

I’ve had the repair done, and it came back as good as new – a week later though and the slot is starting to close up again. I wonder if there is a design fault here, but there isn’t a lot of noise on the internet about it. Curious.

David

David, I reckon that the

David,

I reckon that the aluminium must weaken due to the heat in the drive and develop a bit of a stress point that tries to close the gap. i have been searching the net for other people with the same problem, and have come across a few people but would love if anyone else would come forward with the issue cause i find it hard to believe it would only be us

Darren

Apple sent me a survey

Apple sent me a survey about my repair, and I have used the opportunity to re-iterate the complaint. If other people leave their details here, it will help build up a case with Apple as I am talking to them about it.

David

Hi, My macbook pro (still

Hi,

My macbook pro (still covered under extended applecare) has this morning started spitting cds back at me (I’m in the process of itune-ing all my music). A Google came up with this page. O.K so I’ve read, winced, and then closed the macbook for a closer inspection. Yes, the soft grey stuff on the mouth of the cd slot looks just a tad tighter in the middle. When the macbook is closed there is a discernable dip over the cd drive. This computer lives mostly in one place. Has never been dropped. Isn’t picked up when it’s open. My hand/wrist does sit on that spot when I’m using it, but it’s not an overly heavy hand! The macbook is used a lot ... it’s my main machine … but it’s not mistreated in any way. ARGH!

Lucy, I think I’ve

Lucy,

I think I’ve figured out the cause of my problem. Picking up the laptop using the region around the drive, one-handed, causes too much stress on the case, and it buckles. I am disappointed that the allegedly rugged aluminium case is so delicate in this area, but now I know the cause, I have trained myself to avoid it. I have had numerous laptops over the years, and have never seen the like before.

David

Hi David, Yes, that makes

Hi David,

Yes, that makes sense. And therefore presumably no luck in getting it fixed under applecare?

Lucy

Lucy, I’m afraid not.

Lucy,

I’m afraid not. Now that I am babying the casing I have had no further problems – I still think that it is a design flaw that the case in this area is so weak and vulnerable

Cheers, David

The first time I realized

The first time I realized there was a problem was when I went to eject a cd, and all I got was a crunching noise accompanied by the usual noises of ejecting a cd. The CD remained stuck in the tray. Upon inspection, I realized that the case over the CD tray was bending. It was never carried while open, and supported under the speakers when moved. In the process of returning the case to a shape that would allow the CD to eject, the case separated and now there is a small gap that yanks out arm hair as the computer is used. It sucks! Be very careful when you readjust your slot!

I have the same problem…

I have the same problem… I’ve only had my Macbook Pro for about 2 months, and the metal part above the cd tray is bent so far down that I can’t get any DVDs out… I used metal wrapped in tape, but it broke through and scratched it. I still can’t get the cd out, and it sucks because I was in the middle of installing a program that won’t work now because of Leopard! Sheesh… Im a little upset with Apple now…

I have the same problem, too

I have just noticed that my tenderly cared for and cossetted MBP has a gradually closing SuperDrive hole. This is most definitely a design flaw, as a quick Google search reveals. Are there any chances of a class action to get Apple to fix this for free?

Problem

Yup, I’ve just encountered the problem!

Me too.

Its just one of the many problems i’ve had with my frankly pathetic MacBookPro. I payed two grand for it and its been one unresolved problem after another. This bent CD housing is the final straw.

I, nor my company, will EVER buy another apple product ever again. In recent years the build quality has been at best shoddy, at worst dangerous. My power lead frayed and gave me an electric shock.

Heres a list of some of my problems with MY MacBookPro only so far.

Several keys came off.
I had a dent in the track-pad on purchase.
Paint has worn off the housing.
CD housing bent through resting hand over to type.
Battery needed replacing because it kept over heating.
this also for some reason caused the computer to vibrate as if a current was being passed through it(!!!?)
Power cable tore and exposed live wires.

The only thing apple helped with was the new battery. Disgraceful!

Same issue

Greetings,

I’d like to add my voice to the chorous. I was just told that my macbook’s cd slot was bent due to “physical damage”. They’re dead wrong on this one.

Same Problem

I have the exact same problem and am not suprised to hear that others are in the same boat. I’ve had my 15’‘ macbook pro for a meer 7 months and recently my cds started getting stuck in the drive. Brought it to the macbook store and he got the disc out but said the optical drive was bent and it was “user created damaged” and thus not covered under warranty. I STRONGLY feel that this is a design defect and should be covered. I spent a few hours on the phone with Apple today and got them to agree to send me a box so I could send my computer out for repair. Hopefully they do repair this.. I am VERY frustrated.

same problem here. i’m

same problem here. i’m just about to call apple.

Apple blames their design flaws on consumers.

I just had the same thing happen to my MBP, and I’ve only had it for a year and a half.

As I discovered with the machine I had before this one, Apple relentlessly covers up their design flaws by blaming it on consumers (via thinly veiled terms like “physical damage,” i.e. “using this machine at all is equivalent to tampering with it”). Remember how Powerbooks used to have those thin hinges that cracked if you dared to open and close it more than 20 times? Mine was one of those, and I kept calling Applecare until they repaired it—I’m assuming that, by that point, they’d had enough complaints about that particular flaw to warrant a class action suit, so it was easier to just repair the hinges.

I’m a graduate student, which means I make no money at all. As a result, I’ve treated my $2K machine like gold, since I won’t be able to afford another one anytime soon. Why would someone like me cause physical damage to a laptop? I’ve never picked it up by the drive side, so I know this was caused by the egg-weight force of typing on flimsy metal.

Apple can either deal with me calling them every day (this is the great thing about being a grad student—no money, and nothing but time) or purchase me a year’s worth of Jenny Craig so I can lose the extra weight in my wrists.

Same Problem

After about two weeks of having my Macbook pro (Penryn 2.4 Ghz), I had the same issue. I was freaked out, so the first thing I did was take a pair of pliers and tried to bend it back myself. I didn’t tape the ends of the pliers, however, so it left little scratches on the inside of the slot. So, when I took it to the Apple store to get it fixed, they deemed it as physical abuse, basically saying that I must have dropped the unit. Funny thing is, it never leaves my desk. Anyways, I bend it a little bit every day, hoping that it will one day, be back to normal. ANyone else notice that they seem to have known it was an issue, and “fixed” it on the 17” by surrounding the superdrive with plastic?

Very interesting

Thanks for your observation relating to the 17”. There are quite a few people saying that this problem has occurred when there has been no risk of it being real physical damage. I wonder how many just assume they must have damaged it themselves and don’t kick up a fuss.

David

Macbook Pro

i have had my MBP for about 8 months now and have had many problems like the other have had. about a month after i got my MBP the cd drive was bent to the point that i could not put a cd in. i sent it to apple they said that it was my fault and that they would not fix unless i paid $600 it this really made me mad because i bought $300 apple care so they could tell me that they wont replace anything but the battery and i almost destroyed one of there computers. when i got home i said screw apple and i took out a knife and i bent the aluminum back very easily so that i could put in the disk in. after i did this i looked at the apple protection plan and released that they don’t replace accidental damage or acts of god… what the hell do the cover apple sucks and i will never buy another computer from them again because every other computer maker will fix cosmetic damage for free.

same problem just wanted to

same problem just wanted to add to the complaining cause i“m a student and can’t afford a 600$ repair for a cd drive

Same problem as the rest

I’m having the same problem – I just noticed that my cd drive is bent. It was working fine a week and a half ago, but I’ve been out of town (and the MBP has been at home). My husband said he hadn’t dropped it or anything, so I think I’m having the same problem as everyone. I haven’t gone to apple yet, but I’m expecting I’ll have to pay for the repair. I have to disagree with Jonathan Libby though – I don’t know any other computer maker that will fix cosmetic damage for free – and I’ve worked with many of them.

I’ve had nothing but good experience with Apple, and I have had my MBP for almost 2 years. I had a speaker go that they fixed for free and in fact gave me Apple Care for free because they had it for so long (about a week and a half).

Bring on the class action lawsuit!!!!

Had my MBP for 8 – 9 months. Same problem – I tried using the drive and the cd would not come out. I then noticed the slot was bent down almost completely in the middle. I took it to the Apple Store and they said it was user damage and I would have to pay $450 for it to be repaired. That is about 1/4 of the price of the computer. I am extremely careful with this laptop, I never pick it up by the front. I just type on it and mostly it stays in the same place. It MUST be a design flaw How am I supposed to use this computer if I can’t rest my (skinny) wrists lightly on the front when I type? I have pretty much hated this computer every since I bought it – bad keyboard that misses letters, bad trackpad that requires loads more work than the Vaio I had previously. I only bought this because everyone said how wonderful Macs were and I hated the idea of having to use Vista. This computer sucks!!!! The stupid windows you can only resize from one corner, what is done with a single key on the Vaio requires additional depressing of the apple key etc etc. I could moan on for hours. I will never buy another Mac computer.
So the end of the story is that after I spent about an hour in the Apple store gently pleading my case and showing them my skinny wrists etc they said that they would cover the costs. I would much rather they took this computer away and gave me my money back so I can go and purchase one I can actually use and not have to worry about breaking just by typing.
Let me know if anyone decides to organise a CAL – I will be there!

I had this problem, also.

I had this problem, also. When we took it to the apple store, they fixed it with no problems.

Same Issue, but resolved

I had the same issue a few months ago. My bent drive occurred from resting my palm over the drive while typing. I never intentionally pick up the laptop using that side because my friend had the same thing happen that was mentioned above where it caused the SuperDrive to be bent when picking up the laptop.

Extremely frustrated that this was caused by TYPING on my macbook, I had it sent it. Apparently AppleCare covered, despite the outside of the drive being scuffed up a bit from my attempts to pry it back to a useable state. I’m in the US and dropped it off at a local Mac computer service center (MacForce in Portland, OR) to avoid the crazy lines at the retail Apple Store.

I'm having Macbook drive issue also

I had a Macbook that had this problem also, and did not realize the cause until reading all these posts. I took it to the Apple store and they told me it was physical damage that I had done, and that it would cost several around $600 to fix. Ironically, it was probably done as I slipped it into my padded protective case, and held the edge with one hand. Unfortunately, this laptop was stolen.

Six month later, I bought a replacement Macbook. It worked fine when it arrived, but a week later I had the same issue. This is before I knew that slipping it into the case, one-handed would lead to problems.

Basically, it would be proper for Apple to admit that this is a design flaw. I know of no other laptop that is so fragile that one cannot slip it into a protective case by holding one edge of the laptop in one hand, and the protective case in the other. There are far too many cases of this “bent frame” to be legitimately passed off as irresponsible user damage.

My solution has been to get a Lacie external drive which has worked nicely for me. I can’t carry it around with me, but I can deal with it. I never put any media in the Macbook drive anymore.

My solution to getting media out was to take a pair of tweezers in one hand, set the Macbook on it’s side with the drive facing up, with my hand that isn’t holding tweezers spread the slot wide enough for the cd to pop a tiny bit of the edge out, and press the eject button. When the cd pops the slight edge out grab it with the tweezers and slowly but with a firm grip, pull the cd out. You have to be quick at grabbing the cd before it slides back in.

I would avoid advice some people have given about inserting credit cards or the like into the drive itself. It may do more damage.